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Call it a cop’s instinct: The first time Zenkichi met Kurusu in person, he understood straight away why the seventeen-year-old teenager was anything but your average boy next door.
Basically everything about Kurusu called for attention—not in a “punk-up-to-no-good” but more of a “one-in-a-million-special” kind of way—from his unwavering gaze and his admirable poise to how his ragtag bunch of friends were being drawn to him. Having read the police case file on Kurusu, Zenkichi knew how many contacts the kid had made across the city in just a year’s time. Obviously Kurusu wasn’t a boy of many words, yet a people magnet all the same. The inspector could tell his attempt to tune it down by wearing a pair of big, fake glasses, yet the natural charm and mysterious aura oozing out of him was simply too hard to conceal.
To be honest, Zenkichi’s job would be easier if Kurusu was merely a heartless freeloader relying on his quick wit or good look, because then he would have absolutely no qualms of conscience about arresting the kid after he was done using him. But no, from his investigation and observation, Kurusu worked hard—sometimes a little too hard in his opinion—gears always turning inside his frizzy head and busy looking out for his team. Not to mention he genuinely cared. He wanted to make a difference in this corrupted society by trying to do the right thing, and somehow, it reminded Zenkichi a little bit of himself fifteen years ago back when he first joined the force.
So even though Zenkichi would never admit it out loud, the young leader and his fellow Thieves had slowing but surely grown on him since they had started working together less than three weeks ago. A misstep on Zenkichi’s part, no doubt. It would make things more complicated when he had to cut ties when all was over.
Still, the goal remained the same: He needed the Phantom Thieves’ assistance for uncovering the true culprit behind all the changes of heart across the country. It was his responsibility to keep them safe, at least for a few weeks longer. So when he found out the malevolent intent of the locals in Okinawa, he alerted the group at once and together they escaped into the Jail. Without what they called a “Persona”, though, he was left fending for himself by the entrance while the Thieves went ahead and scouted the place. Zenkichi wasn’t going to lie, it was probably one of the most helpless experiences in his career—waiting alone in an otherworldly realm full of malicious magical beings with no backup but only his gun to defend himself. He was never happier at seeing them when they finally showed up again hours later.
By then everyone was pretty much dead on their feet and ready to pass out. As energetic as teenagers could be, Zenkichi supposed fighting monsters overnight would do that to you. So after returning to the real world, he ushered them back to their camper van, telling them to get a few hours of shuteyes while he did some investigation on the lab. He couldn’t possibly let the teenagers do all the work for him, could he?
His decision to sacrifice sleep proved fruitful, as Shuzo Ubukata, the missing Monarch of the Jail the Thieves just cleared, was found dead at the base of the cliff behind the abandoned research facility, meaning the evidence inside could be legally used. And now, Zenkichi found himself going back to the camper van to relay the turn of events to the group, fortunately, this time without the threat of brainwashed locals. It hadn’t been five hours since he last saw the kids, but as he approached the van he spotted a lean teenager preparing breakfast for his team in an outdoor made-do kitchen, the rest of them probably still fast asleep inside.
“Morning, Kurusu,” Zenkichi greeted.
“Morning Gramps,” Kurusu spared him a glance. “Back so early?”
“Yeah, got some important news to share with you guys,” Zenkichi frowned, noticing the dark circles under the kid’s eyes. “Did you even take a nap?”
“Couldn’t sleep, might as well be productive,” the leader shrugged. “You know, I can ask you the same thing.”
“Pulling an all-nighter is nothing new in our line of work…You, on the other hand, is still a high-schooler who should get a solid eight-hour sleep every night.”
“A high-schooler who’s also the leader of the Phantom Thieves currently being threatened jail time if he doesn’t operate with a police inspector and prove himself innocent, but thanks for the concern, Gramps.”
“…Fair enough,” Zenkichi stifled a sigh. “Anyway, I came to update you on our little adventure in ‘Metaworld’ last night--”
“It’s Metaverse.”
“Whatever, it’s not important!” He cleared his throat. “So, turns out your effort wasn’t all for nothing—the evidence you guys found in the lab can be officially admitted.”
That finally grabbed Kurusu’s full attention, causing the boy to look up. “How so?”
So the inspector recapped his discovery of Shuzo’s corpse possibly as a result of suicide and how it warranted an official investigation of the lab. At first Kurusu listened with rapt attention, eyes gleaming with interest, but his face turned two shades paler as he went on. Zenkichi assumed it was because of his mention the body seemingly being dead for months judging by its rotten condition, and then all of a sudden Kurusu’s eyes went unfocused and his legs started wavering.
“Hey, you alright--”
The next thing Zenkichi knew, the teenager was unconscious in his arms; apparently Zenkichi’s limps had moved on instincts the moment Kurusu’s body decided to go offline, catching the falling teenager just in time to prevent his head from hitting the stove.
“Kurusu?” He shook the dead weight in his arms. Not getting any response, he slung the kid’s arm under his shoulders and half-carried-half-dragged him to the lounge chair under the van’s awning before finally being able scrutinize his face—eyes shut tight and brows drawn together, with a sheen of sweat covering his forehead and ashen face. Zenkichi knew this look all too well; he had caught it every so often on some of his overworked colleagues, and even in the mirror when he went through a few days without sleep hoping to crack a case.
Zenkichi ran his hand through his hair, his guilty conscience calling him out at the back of his mind. He could argue that this was none of his fault, that Kurusu was inherently as much of a workaholic as Zenkichi was and did this to himself, but he knew damn well that one of the main reasons the kid was working so hard and stressing himself out was because of the threat of jail time by the inspector…What was he thinking cowing a minor into doing what he wanted? Had he really dipped so low as to use a bunch of kids to climb up the career hierarchy?
His guilty trip was cut short by the sound of someone climbing down the van’s ladder.
“Mornin’ Akira…” Sakamoto’s yawn stopped mid-track when he spotted them, immediately rushing to his leader’s side. “Akira…? What’s wrong with him, Gramps!?” The inspector was about to explain, but the van’s door chose that moment to swing open, revealing another blonde.
“Ryuji! Why do you have always have to be so loud--Hey, what's happening…?”
Before he knew it the rest of the group was out, heckling him with rounds of questions.
“What the heck did ya do to him, Gramps!?” Sakamoto accused.
“I swear if you have so much as touched his hair I’ll expose all the search history on your phone!“ Sakura stomped her feet.
“Did you?” Kitagawa asked, tone calm but gaze possessed. “…Touched our leader’s hair?”
Niijima and Okumura said nothing, but the glaring daggers they threw at him sent chills down his spine. Even the cat had jumped up onto Kurusu’s lap to hiss at him.
“C-calm down, kids!” He held up both hands, trying to put distance between himself and the raving teenagers and feline. “It’s not what you think--He passed out and I helped him up. If anything, you should all thank me!”
Fortunately the AI on Kurusu’s phone decided to intervene, “I can confirm that is what happened,” she said in her usual cheerful tone. “Akira has fainted while talking to Zenkichi due to heatstroke and over exhaustion. Zenkichi helped him up and lie down on the chair.”
“Akira’s been waking up extra early every day to prepare infiltrations and make breakfast for us…” Niijima mused, her previous malice replaced by worry for her leader. “Coupled with last night’s excursion, he must have tired himself out…”
“Oh Akira…” Takamaki carefully placed a washed cloth on his forehead before turning to Zenkichi. “Why didn’t you say so earlier, Gramps?”
“I never had the chance between all your accusations! Geez!”
“Aw relax Gramps~” Sakura poked his side. “We were just messing with you!”
“Yeah dude, we know you’re on our side!” Sakamoto slapped a hand on his back a bit too forcefully, causing him to choke on his own saliva and go on a coughing fit.
“I wasn’t joking, though,” Kitagawa said solemnly. “There will be consequences if you touch Akira’s hair without permission.”
“Anyway, thank you for helping Akira-kun, Zenkichi,” Okumura gave him a sweet smile without a trace of the scowl just moments ago. The change in her expression was the most blatant, Zenkichi decided, as if a switch had been flipped. She reminded him of the murderer with dual personalities he caught a few years back, and the repercussion he’d have to face if he was to double-cross this tightknit group of kids…
“Guys…? Gramps?” Kurusu groaned out, his eyes finally fluttering open. A bit of color had returned to his cheeks and lips.
“Akira, you’re awake! Thank god!”
“Ya okay, man?”
“…Yeah,” the leader replied, assessing his surroundings. “I passed out?”
“Yes, you did,” the AI girl announced, once again taking the lead to explain to the leader what had happened while the rest of the Thieves began fussing over their leader, to which Zenkichi stood aside and watched: The cat lecturing Kurusu about not taking care of himself while kneading his thigh, Niijima and Okumura brining water and food to him like a pair of mother-hens, Sakamoto and Takamaki flanking and fanning him like siblings slash bodyguards. At one point Kitagawa even started taking off his shoes, offering to give him a foot massage like this wired uncle only to be swatted away by Sakura saying “I don’t think a foot massage is what Akira needs right now, Inari!”.
“Guys, I feel fine now, really,” Kurusu cooed, sitting up on the chair. “And Gramps, thanks…I guess I owe you one.”
“No probs, just…take it easy, at least for today, alright?” Zenkichi found himself smiling a bit, relieved that the kid seemed okay. “The same goes for you too, Niijima. Ease up on the driving unless you want to end up with chronic back pain.”
“O-okay…” Niijima blinked, caught off guard by being addressed.
“Do I detect a hint of fatherly concern?“ Akira teased, smugness bleeding into his still too pale face.
“Aw Gramps, you do care ‘bout us,” Of course Sakamoto went along with the leader. And now Kitagawa was framing them with his fingers. Great.
“The unlikely bonding between a police officer and a group of misfits—how heart-warming!”
“Don’t get me wrong, I was just--" The inspector stuttered, trying to deflect. “Being accused of exploiting a bunch of teenagers is the last thing I need in my career. Plus you’re no use to me dead on your feet!”
He received a round of “Uh-huh~” and knowing smirks in return, to which he could only respond by fake-coughing into his fist and turning his face away.
“…Since you’re feeling better already, I’m gonna go and coordinate with the local police. I’ll keep you updated if anything important comes up.” He couldn’t help pointing a finger at Kurusu before leaving. “I mean it, kid. Don’t overdo it. Don’t do anything reckless. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Dad.”
Brat.
“See ya, Gramps!” The giggles behind him as he walked away were jabbing at his pride, yet stirring a strange sense of familiarity in his heart.
“Zenkichi.”
“AHHH!”
His heart jumped out when a young girl’s voice came from his pants pocket.
“Who--Sophia!? What’re you doing in my phone!?” He yelled at the AI who was waving at him friendly on the screen.
“I am humanity’s companion. I came to offer you my company.”
“Let me rephrase that—why are you here instead of Kurusu’s phone??”
“Oh. You seem like you are in need of someone to talk to,” Sophia continued in a chirpy tone. “The expression on your face is similar to the one you had when Akane-chan spoke to you in a mean way. Does hanging out with the Phantom Thieves remind you of your time with Akane-chan?”
“Wha--? No, I don’t--"
“You should not deny your true feeling, Zenkichi. The way you refuse to address the Phantom Thieves by their first names is you trying to prevent yourself from getting too attached to them, but I believe it is already too late.”
That shut down any retort he had in mind. He let out a tired sigh, giving up at arguing with the AI. “That’s…surprising perceptive for a supposedly emotionless AI.”
“You think so? Akira has been helping me to learn more about the human heart. I believe I’m getting better at identifying different human emotions these days!”
He chuckled. That sounded exactly like something Kurusu would do.
“So Zenkichi, do you think I’m a good humanity companion?”
“Yeah yeah you are…whatever…" he said wryly. "Now will you get out of my phone?”
“Okay, bye Zenkichi!” And then Sophia was gone, his phone back to the home screen.
Opening his car door and sitting down behind the wheel, the inspector thought back to the girl’s words. Nope, it absolutely had nothing to do with these kids worming their way into his heart; he only cared about their safety so they would continue to be of use to him, but he had a feeling his caution of taking it easy would be ignored anyway, especially by the young leader.
Then he remembered this nice hotel in Kyoto he once visited with Aoi and Akane. The hot spring there was well known for relieving fatigue and restoring energy. Hmm, it might be a good idea to book a night or two at the Bureau’s expense for the kids.